Reaching

It is 4:47 in the morning and the arms of my heart reach for the Prince of Peace, the God of all Comfort.  I cannot be satisfied with knowing about Him, I must know Him. I need the light of His Love, the Joy of His touch and the Peace of resting in His arms. I am hungry for food from His table, no religious snacks will do, no vending machine religion without heart or soul can quench my thirst.  I must have HIM, I cannot live without HIM. He is the source of my strength, the hope of my future and the joy of my life.  Like my children when they were very small who would lift there little arms toward me and say, “take you daddy.”  So this morning I lift my weary arms toward heaven and say, “take you daddy.”  As the old gospel song says, “Oh I need you , every hour I need you.”   jfs

Ps 143:6  I spread out my hands to You; My soul longs for You like a thirsty land. Selah

"BEING"

Much of the time our failure as a Christian is the failure of “being” not “doing.”  If you are like me when you ask yourself, “How can I be a better Christian,” you think of,  “What do I need to do?” I guess it is natural that when we think of growing as a Christian we think of having to do more, strive harder, add new things to our to do list.  For me this never works.  I always find myself in the trap of busy-ness.  If you think the path to spirituality is work, work, work, then you need to hear the words of Jesus, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  Matthew 11:28-29 (NKJV)  When we try to “do” in order to “be” we can never “do” enough.  When we focus on “being” the “doing” comes natural.  Heavy loads and galling yokes never come from Jesus. These heavy loads are often put on us by well-meaning people who want us to do more so we will be successful in their eyes and they often use a worldly definition of success.  So what do I have to do to be a better Christian?  Work harder? NO, Learn to Listen and Obey.  Jesus knows you were not made for heavy loads.  Just focus on “being” and in “being” you will “do” the right things.  Relax, stop letting the opinions of others plot the course of your life.  It is your life and they won’t be there when you stand before the Father.  Learn to live within the bounds of your creation.  Superman and superwoman are deceptions, stop trying to fly and walk with the Prince of Peace. jfs

Frustration

I just heard pots and pans clanging together and Mary’s frustrated voice proclaim, “I’ve got to have some room in this kitchen!!!!!!!”  I know it is not funny but I laughed anyway.  She also added, “You have three shops and I have ten feet.”  Do I sense a bit of resentment?  I built the kitchen cabinets so it must be my fault.  What a joy to live with this girl.  I cherish every moment with her.  She is my best friend and leaving her to go speak somewhere is always difficult for me.  These days we are trying to make the most of every moment together.  We are realists and know that we are nearing the end of our earthly journey.  We enjoy the simple things of life, our deck, flowers, birds, and of course Tramp. We have had an incredible journey together and while we are very different, our differences have served us well.  Now back to the subject of frustration and how it can wrap its tentacles around our lives and leave us miserable.  I get frustrated with my ADD.  I can’t stay with anything for long.  Studying for me has been in tidbits at all hours of the day and night.  I have notes written on everything from napkins to paper plates and I can’t find them when I need them.  I think my greatest frustration is with me.  I keep hoping I can do better but the guy I see in the mirror just gets older.  I am dealing with some of my frustration these days.  I have decided I can’t be like you.  I can’t please everyone and some people will never love me no matter what I do.  I have decided to stop chasing success and go for relationship building.  The question is, can I have a close relationship with Jesus and be a failure? I think not.  I will no longer let you or anyone else define success for me. What matters most to me is that my Heavenly Father is pleased with me.  I am weary of living by other people’s definitions and for me that has been the source of so much of my frustration.  It is His “Well Done” I am in pursuit of and anything that takes me away from that is cause for frustration.  Don’t let the clanging of life’s pots and pans frustrated you. It is not that important.  Stick with the important stuff, stop chasing rainbows and for goodness sake, BE YOURSELF.  Jfs

1Co 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.